Dedicated to omgpink for inspiring me to write about KHR, and OC at that rate. This character is a tomboyish one, with a bit of tsundere. Enjoy. It's my first fanfic, so please be nice. This is set during the Daily Life Arc up to some extent in Varia or Future. XD

Rating: about T to M, I guess, for violence, some foreseen innuendos and crude humor

Shipping: main is about Yamamoto, in the background, Haru and Gokudera and Tsuna and Kyoko. I'm currently deciding between Romance or Friendship, but this fanfic will be comprised of Humor, Drama, some Angst and Action.

Disclaimer: Akira Amano owns Reborn, not me. If I did, I'd probably make up a lot more characters that were female and are badass.

Moscow, breathing fire like a human volcano with its smouldering lava of passion, ambition and politics, its hurly- burly of meetings and entertainment... Moscow seethes and bubbles and gasps for air. It's always thirsting for something new, the newest events, the latest sensation. Everyone wants to be the first to know. It's the rhythm of life today."

-Svetlana Alliluevya

Chapter 1: Miss Nothing

Yuki Kanazawa was not like any of the Namimori girls. She stood at 160 centimeters, with a messy chunk of long thick hair the color of chocolate tied in a messy ponytail or wrestled wildly in two odangos on either side of her head. She had those big teal eyes that sparkled whenever she smiled and a rare one at that. And the way she wore her uniform: pants substituting her skirts, and a pair of dirty Converse snickers. The ribbon? Forget it; this girl was not your typical Namimori schoolgirl you saw chatting around.

She ruined it.

At thirteen, she was tall for her age and had an athletic body that was considered androgynous. Meaning, she looked like she was flat-chested, when in reality, she had a chest that considered too small. Not like she cared about it. This girl had a strict no-skirts policy and she defined the word 'tomboy' in an aspect. Member of the Baseball Club, the Namimori Mail, the notorious newspaper, ex-member of the Karate Club, and a kickout from the Kendo Club, with an estimated intelligence of 190, this girl who used the personal pronoun 'Boku' instead of 'Atashi.'

And today was another typical day for this Namimori schoolgirl.

She woke up, and ate her ramen for breakfast, took a bath, dressed in her uniform without the tie and the skirt and on the way to school, she was fumbling with her hair, tying it in a sporty ponytail. Her deep navy blue knacksack was practically against her back, so it was no need to complain again. But then, who would be there to listen? Who would be there to reply to her and scold her? Of course, no one. As she walked briskly, her lips formed some syllables and hymns were floating in the wind. Around her, the sakura trees were blooming and the ephemeral blooms fell to the ground.

"The festival at the end of August flooded with people
wearing yukata and geta,
making sounds of click-clack ring.
As the fireworks suddenly went off, we looked up,
and I stole a glance at your enraptured face."

Utakata Hanabi. She was singing softly as she walked. And her face dimpled as a faint pink danced around her cheeks. Singing and walking were two natural things to her, as long as nobody noticed her, anyway. Usually, she would walk to school with her teammates, but nowadays, she kept mostly to herself.

As she walked, she was already planning her day. Lunch all alone in the rooftop, then go to the library. After school, visit the mall and buy some books and new baseball gear, after practice. Pass by the sushi bar place near my house, and sleep after doing my assignments. Studying then sleeping, ah sleep –

WHACK!

Before she knew it, her back hit the rough ground of Namimori. And she felt something rather heavy and warm pressed against her. She could feel the heat radiating from this body. And she could smell this smell… What was this smell? She ground her teeth. Whoever this person was, had to die. Oh, hell yeah, someone was on top of her. If anyone from the baseball team saw her, she would beat them all up. Yuki could already see how she would murder the captain. Hmmmm…. Whoever you are, just apologize and tell me that all is well and that no one is looking, please. She refused to budge. This guy's heavy.

"You okay?"

Yuki opened an eye. Her face heated up. She probably looked like a battered tomato and Apollo's sacred cows: stupid, sprawled, lying, embarrassed and bright red. To her surprise, a tall boy with spiky dark hair and eyes the color of chestnuts was the one on top of her. It's Yamamoto! Oh crap. "I'm okay." She looked away and stared at the ground. So, it WAS one of her male baseball teammates. Takeshi Yamamoto. When they were younger, they used to play together, and in their childhood, used to be best friends, used to be so close. Ever since he joined the Namimori Baseball Club ahead of her, she had gotten a little distant around him. The Namimori Mail often took up her time and they no longer walked to school together, much less talked. Aside from the distance, he was practically the only one who bothered to talk to her and she pretty much pretended to ignore his existence.

"I'm fine," she started to say, but then two more boys came into view. One with gray hair and sparkling green eyes, the other smaller than the others, and had spiky brown hair that defied all the laws concerning gravity and big brown eyes. Of course, Dame Tsuna. Tsuna Sawada, nicknamed No-Good until he won the volleyball tournament and fought Mochida-senpai. The gray-haired one was Hayato Gokudera, a Math genius with a bad-boy reputation which made him famous amongst the Namimori females. Yuki never considered him good-looking. Besides, she often called him Ugly behind his back. For some reason, she didn't understand why the Namimori female population was so taken with Yamamoto and Gokudera.

"Is she okay?" asked Tsuna. There was a hint of true concern in his voice. Beside him, Gokudera's eyes went BIG with curiosity. "S-So, Yakyu-Baka, you bumped into her?" asked the Math expert. Yamamoto nodded casually, for someone who appeared to be in a very um, awkward position. GET HIM OFF OF ME, OR I SWEAR, I'LL BEAT YOU ALL UP, Yuki wanted to yell. She was too flustered to resound her thoughts.

"So, you okay, um, what's your name?" Tsuna asked. He was inspecting her like she was an alien, let alone a girl.

"The name's Kanazawa Yuki," Yuki muttered. "Baseball Club and Namimori Mail writer."

Gokudera's eyes lit up. "So you were the student who scored a 190 in an IQ test?" he asked. Yuki nodded. "Yes, I am, so can you please get Yamamoto off me –"

"Hire her." Out of the green, a baby with big black eyes, spiky dark hair wearing a black fedora hat and holding a green gun materialized. Yuki made a face. "HIRE me?" she demanded.

"REBORN!" Tsuna sounded irritated. "Hire her? But Kanazawa-san's –"

Reborn held up a hand. "She's fine. She's smart, has good reflexes, and plenty wits. Not to mention quite full of potential." He smiled at Yuki. Yuki blushed. "Nice to um, meet you, Reborn-san," she muttered. "I'm Yuki Kanazawa, so feel free to call me Kanazawa-san, or Yuki-kun." As she said the last word, Yuki glanced at Yamamoto. It had been him who used to her call her that, but nowadays it was Kanazawa-san.

Yuki's jaw hung open. "But that's impossible," she blurted. "My parents would KILL me if they learn I'm being hired." She shook her head. "Anyway, what am I being hired into?"

Tsuna awkwardly looked at his feet. "Tsuna's the 10th Vongola Boss," Reborn went on. "A Mafia Family."

"Mafia?" Yuki's head spun with thoughts about guns, bad people in black suits, money, and things she had seen when she first saw the movie The Godfather. "My parents will murder me if they learn I'm part of the Mafia. They won't tolerate it."

Reborn cocked his eyebrow pensively and confidently. "I doubt they won't," he said. "The Kanazawa family has been under the Vongola for ten generations. That's the tradition." Tradition be hanged, Yuki thought.

"I'll consider it." Reborn bobbed his head and looked at Yamamoto. "You can um, get off her now," Tsuna said, embarrassed. Yamamoto did as what he was told and extended his hand for Yuki to hold.

Yuki took it and stood up. It was warm, just like before.

"Thank you," she muttered, avoiding Tsuna, Gokudera, Reborn and Yamamoto's eyes. Nervously, she held on to the strap of her knapsack.

As she tottered and turned to go walk, she could not help but ball her fist in annoyance. Her elder brother Kito would have to explain a lot of things to her by the time she would go home. Her parents were overseas, working, in Italy and had settled there, leaving behind Yuki and her elder brother Kito to live in Japan. Kito was studying Medicine in Namimori University and he was seventeen years old. Aside that, he was the family breadwinner in Japan, working part-time in the local sushi bar and he was heading the Kanazawa business, which mainly was a store that sold weapons, technology or traditional.

"You okay, Kanazawa-san?" called Tsuna.

Yuki was surprised he was standing behind her. "Yes," she returned roughly and went on walking. "Besides, Sawada…" She paused. "You can call me Kanazawa, or Yuki-kun." She forced herself to smile. From behind, she knew that Yamamoto and Gokudera were already walking, too.

For some reason, she felt like she was going to be stuck with these three fellows for the rest of her year. She better start making friends.

RING! The bell rang, signifying recess. In reply, the whole class of 1-A cheered. Students flooded out of the room, with their respective lunchboxes, no doubt carrying boxed lunches, courtesy of obedient females. Yuki yawned and massaged her head, avoiding looking at the students. She tapped on her temple, reading the word problem on her notebook. Before even Recess had hit in, the students had been taking their dreaded Math class. Usually, Yuki was a good student, but she had this tendency to be lazy now and then. She usually got high scores and if there was one thing that DID pull her grades down, it was that darn Math grade. Her lowest Math grade was an 80, when she graduated from Elementary and nowadays, it was an 81. She wanted to murder the teacher. Seriously, why couldn't the teacher have pity on her? Her English was 88, her Home Ec an 85, PE 88, History 90… Besides Math, Home Economics was her lowest with 85.

It wasn't just the subject that turned her off. It was also the teacher, personally and academically speaking. This teacher was no fun at all. Rather, he sucked the fun out of Math with his lectures that lasted thirty minutes that could've been wasted for reviewing, answering exercises, checking assignments, explaining by the students themselves, enjoyable projects. Every day, except on days where he gave quizzes that lasted two periods long, was a lecture day. It sucked and it was boring. No wonder even Yamamoto or even Tsuna could even score higher on the subject than her.

Stupid Math. Stupid teacher.

Inwardly, she cursed him for making the subject difficult and boring. Her fingers practically strangled her black G-Tech 0.4 ball pen.

Hmmm… Max is thrice Eve's age. Eight years ago, Max was twice Eve's age. What is Max's current age? Annoyed, the tomboy poked the page of her Math notebook with her pencil. What kind of problem is this? It's not logical. She wanted to burn the problem and go downstairs to eat. But if she did do it, then she would have to kiss her high grades goodbye and she felt a stab of pity for her brother who wasted his time working hard to pay the tuition.

"What kind of problem is this?" she blurted.

"Kanazawa-kun!" Yuki craned her head. Gokudera was behind her, in his gray-haired ugliness, basking in sweat. Oh, it's Ugly. "What do you want?" She eyed the problem with an air of importance. "As you can see, I'm busy." She gestured to the Math equation in her open notebook. The boy snorted at her, as if he was amused. "Jyuudaime wants you to join us. Besides, that homework is for tomorrow. You can just do that when you get home." He seemed irritated.

"Hn." She rolled her eyes and poked the paper again. "Like I can just go straight home after school. I have commitments, like the Baseball Club." She waved him away. "Go away. I have homework to do." She ground her teeth as she solved the equation.

Max - 3x - Eight Years Ago: 2x

Eve - x - Eight Years Ago: x-8

"So you're in the Baseball Club, like Yakyuu – Baka?" He seemed interested now. Yuki glanced up. She was growing impatient. "Hell yes. So go away now. Tell Sawada I'll be joining you later. After I'm done with my Math homework." She bent down.

"Is Yakyuu Baka –"

"Shut up, Ugly."

A long silence enveloped. Yuki glanced up. "What's the problem?" To her surprise, a vein from Gokudera's forehead throbbed. And he bared his teeth. He held bombs in his hands and he looked like he was about to murder her. "WHY YOU WOMAN?" The bombs lit up out of nowhere.

"What now? I just said that you were –" Yuki closed her Math notebook and taking her lunchbox, put it on her arm.

"Be quiet!" He raised his hand.

Yuki held up her hands. "Jeez, chill, Ugly!" she cried in frustration. "Besides, -"

"Be quiet!"

"Hn." Yuki opened the classroom door and marched out. As she walked, she could feel her other female classmates' stares. They were wondering why was Gokudera-kun chasing after her? Her, of all people? This freak, with a high IQ, and a tomboy? Oh well, she didn't care, did she? "You woman!"

Yuki raised her brow. For some reason, she noticed her schoolmates were dead on their tracks. Others inched closer to the side. And in the center, she was standing, shock-still, while Gokudera trailed after her like a lovesick puppy. Only that he wasn't in love with her and that he was after her, like the way a hunter ran after his stricken deer.

"Leave me alone, Ugly!" she snapped and continued walking.

However, Fate was not kind to her.

In front of her walking was a tall and gangly boy with short black hair, a black jacket with him and a red armband on his arm. He held a notebook and he was followed by a muscular male with an Elvis Presley-like haircut that also defied gravity.

Oh, no. Stupid, stupid Discipline Committee.

Yuki stopped dead in her tracks.

"You're in my way, herbivore." The boy's eyes flashed a steely color between blue and gray. Hibari-san! Oh, crap. Why of all days she had to stand in his way? He was the most dangerous person in Namimori who bit people to death. He was scary and psycho and he was probably going to kill her. All of this, courtesy of Gokudera.

"What's her name?" Hibari-san asked, addressing the muscular male. The latter only shook his head. "Kyo-san, it's Yuki Kanazawa. Baseball Club, school paper member, ex-member of the Karate and Kendo club. Honor student. She's never gotten in major trouble."

It's all Ugly's fault! She wanted to yell.

"Hmm, a first-timer?" Oh, it was The Smile of Hibari-san. The kind of smile that appeared on his lips whenever he found something or someone to bite to death. How many times did she see it? How many times did she cherish the thought that even if she could be a little rowdy at times, cherished that this smile would never be even directed at her? Oh, hell yeah. She was in the wrong.

"I'm sorry." Yuki bowed her head. "It won't happen again," she added.

Hibari-san did not bother to consider her excuse. How cruel. "I guess I'll have to bite you to death," he declared. Yuki's muscles tensed. Her heart sank.

He pulled out his tonfa and lunged at her. Yuki took a quick few steps away. "Wait, it's all a misunderstanding," she grumbled. In a flash, the tonfa aimed for her. She bent down and tried to dodge.

The tonfa was about to hit her when she made a clumsy attempt to hold the tonfa with her right hand. Oh yeah, she was left-handed.

"Hibari-san, it's just a misunderstanding." Those steely eyes glared at her again. She exerted more effort into putting more strength in her hand to stop the tonfa from landing hits on her.

"What make you think that, herbivore?" He gripped his tonfa tightly. "As far as I am concerned, you were in my way, which is enough reason for me to bite you to death." Annoyed, Yuki tightened her hold in the tonfa. This guy's reasoning makes me want to puke. It's so illogical. More brute force, she willed. "I don't count that as a good reason for you to bite me to death. Did I defy any of your rules?"

"Well, uniform." Kusakabe answered. He pointed to her pants. "Uniform violation."

Yuki let go of the tonfa and inched away. "Well? It's just a uniform violation, and what else? None," she demanded.

Hibari and Kusakabe exchanged looks. Hibari seemed annoyed and Kusakabe was his usual self. "Kyo-san," the latter muttered.

Hibari nodded.

"It's a misunderstanding, right?" Yuki demanded. Hibari glanced at her. "As far as I am concerned, it is not a misunderstanding." With that, he walked away.

"Sorry." Yuki tried to sound polite as she apologized to Tsuna. "Ugly," she began when she saw Yamamoto laugh. "I mean, Gokudera-san, tried to fetch me, but I was busy working on my Math homework. Then when I was done, I bumped into Hibari-san." She hung her head and pulled out her recess, the one her brother made for her. It was a taco. Pulling out her taco, she took the seat between Gokudera and Yamamoto, a little exasperated at how she wasted the time for her Math homework for arguing with the class's Math specialist.

"Did he bite you to death?" Tsuna's hand shook as he popped his sandwich into his mouth. Yuki nodded. He stole a look at Gokudera. "Gokudera-kun, did you protect her?" he asked.

Gokudera shook his head. "She managed to do fine," he huffed.

Yuki shrugged. "'Sides, I only tried to dodge a bit. It's not a big deal. Girls have to be strong to survive." She huffed and wolfed down her taco. "Besides, Ugly –"

Yamamoto shook his head."You should've known better, Gokudera," he said. This time, he looked serious.

"Oh, I'm fine, Yamamoto," Yuki cut in.

A pair of brown eyes eyed her with worry.

"No need to be concerned over me, Yamamoto. As you can see, I'm perfectly fine." She wiped her lip with the tissue. Yamamoto glanced over at Tsuna and Gokudera. Gokudera was trying to make amends with Tsuna. Promising he would do his job better next time, no doubt. His usual concerned self, anything for Tsuna, of course.

"I can watch over Kanazawa," Yamamoto volunteered. Tsuna looked relieved. Gokudera scowled. "Not you, Yakyuu-Baka!" he boomed. "It should be me, Jyuudaime's right-hand man who should watch over her." Gokudera bowed dramatically. Yuki opened her mineral water bottle and took a sip. Leave the trio to bicker who was supposed to be watching her; besides, she could take care of herself.

"I'm her teammate in Baseball Club. I can walk her home."

Yuki coughed.

"That's good then," Tsuna breathed. It was obvious he was relieved. Just then, a girl with red hair passed by. She had golden eyes and she was petite, huddling close to another girl with curly dark hair. The school idol, Kyoko Sasagawa and her friend, the observant Hana Kurokawa. They were two girls who Yuki liked; she never made much effort to talk to them, but whenever they were assigned in group work, she was polite and obedient and nice. Not at all bad for the Namimori schoolgirl. As Kyoko passed by, Yuki could not help but notice how Tsuna watched her.

It was obvious he had eyes for the girl. For a moment, Yuki observed him: warm brown eyes. The way he looked at her, the way he seemed to consider her, the way he watched, deep with his eyes. His eyes were lions for the girl. His breathing was kind of labored and he bit his lip unconsciously. Pink flushed his face for a moment. The same look Yuki always saw plastered on her parents' faces whenever they were present, deep in each other's eyes, full of acceptance, acknowledgement, love, generosity and such kindness. For a minute, she felt envious.

I wish there was someone who can look at me like that.

The sound of gentle footsteps and away walked Kyoko Sasagawa with Hana Kurokawa. Tsuna's gaze faded and focused back on his friends.

"He likes her," Yuki whispered fervently. "Did you say something?" Yamamoto asked. Before Yuki could reply, a voice called from afar: "Dost the picture, love?" The next thing she knew, she was practically dripping wet. A shower of cold water fell down on her, wetting her hair that she painstakingly grew long, her Namimori uniform soaked to the skin, to the point she felt bare, and that her arms could be seen through the thin white shirt she wore. Thank God she was wearing the navy blue vest, or else she would have suffered a fate worse than Hades himself.

Her ears buzzed and her cheeks went hot. Her jaw dropped. "UGLY!" She balled her fist defiantly.

"Um, you're wet, Kanazawa," stated Tsuna, stating the obvious. "Who did this to you?" asked Yamamoto. He craned his head, as if he were looking for something. "Ugly…" Tsuna's eyes widened. "Oh, you mean Gokudera-kun?" He shook his head. "Gokudera-kun?" he asked, his voice soft and kind and worried.

"Yes, Jyuudaime?"

"Kanazawa's wet. Can you accompany her to the –"

"I'd rather go myself." Three pairs of concerned eyes stared at Yuki with worry. She was soaked and annoyed and her clothes clung to her like limp seaweed. Her hair plastered to her back. Annoying woman, Gokudera thought as he surveyed the blighted being with the taco plastic in her hand. "Your uniform's wet and practically see-through," he added, slightly amused. This girl was somewhere between the Annoying-O-Meter level of Haru, Tsuna's deranged fangirl and Yakyuu-Baka. Better yet, this girl might as well look good with Yakyuu-Baka. The level of how annoying and irritating they were matched. Might as well set them up together. Both in Baseball Club, and both are completely annoying. He inwardly smiled. The strategy had to be set in motion.

Yakyuu Baka had offered to walk her home, so that part was planned. But now. Gokudera looked at her again. He could see her pale skin underneath the transparent white cloth that covered her arms. Ignore it, thought the former piano prodigy. Just focus on Jyuudaime now. After all, he's the reason why I'm even tolerating Yakyuu-Baka, that annoying woman Haru, and now this annoying tomboy. His green gaze averted back to Tsuna, who was still worried.

"Are you sure you'll be safe, Kanazawa? There are boys all over. Hibari-san might try to beat you up again." The Sawada's lip trembled with concern and fear. He looked at Gokudera. No doubt he was expecting this self-proclaimed right-hand man to prove his trustworthiness by helping this girl. "How about you, Gokudera-kun?"

"Sure!" Gokudera flashed Tsuna his best smile and stood up. Yuki scowled.

As they made their way downstairs, she could not help but feel more annoyed. For some reason, she felt like she didn't trust Gokudera at all. Maybe Yamamoto would be much better. She glanced at him one last look. He was looking at the sky, innocently. Brown eyes, that typical smile on his face, she could not help but sigh to herself. He was still the same old friend she had known, perhaps.

"Get on going, woman." Gokudera was impatient. With another scowl, Yuki walked down the stairs.

Nine years ago, Namimori Park. A typical sunny day.

The sun was shining. The sky was blue. The air was calm around and it was unusually chilly that morning. Nothing too humid at all. In the green grass, a small girl sat on a checkered picnic mat. Her hair was silky and deep brown and long, reaching to her thighs. Big eyes shone teal in the light and those eyes reflected the state of a happy child. Clad in a denim jumper and a light wisteria jumper and in black Converse sneakers, the child was picking grass with her stubby hands. Beside her, lay a picnic basket and plates of donuts, and some ebi curry. A jug of lemonade rested within the wicker picnic basket, waiting to be devoured by this hungry young one and her family.

In the field where the picnic mat lay, there were plenty of flowers. Wild, blooming and free, like the grasslands. They seemed so endless and big like the sky that had no endings and boundaries. A woman and man in their middle thirties' sat pensively, watching their child. The woman was comely, and could have been more attractive had she smiled. Her hair was tied in a bun, with blunt bangs framing her face. Glowing green eyes, full lips, athletic frame, and fiery red hair that reaching until her shoulders.

The man was androgynous, his features too comely for a man. Short chestnut hair, and teal eyes, pale skin. Glasses sat on his sharp nose.

"Nii-san's taking so long," grumbled the child. The man laughed and patted the child's head. "Yuki-kun," he chuckled. The child stared at him.

"Really, you should have been born a boy." The child's eyes focused on the sky. "At first your mother thought you were a boy, Yuki-kun."

A boy. The thought rang across the child's mind. So I am a boy. "Boku wa ani no tame ni mite ikimasu," said the child. I'll go look for Big Brother. The child's chin lifted. The pronoun Boku. That way the child carried herself… Something about it was so masculine. "Sure, just don't get lost, Yuki-chan." Her worried mother.

"Oh, I won't!"
The child ran towards the endless lumps of green grass that grew taller than her. Endless, big, wide, and open. Like the friendship that was waiting to be formed out there.

Changing sucked. And especially when the clothes you changed into was something you didn't feel exactly comfortable around with. Particularly: the Namimori girls' uniform: red ribbon[check], vest[check], blouse[check], and the worst part of it all: that horrible mini-skirt that exposed her thighs. And no one at school had ever seen Yuki Kanazawa's thighs since the beginning of time. Not even that time when the class had to act out that horrible skit about Rashomon. She was the old lady who had to scalp someone's head and they had to put paint on her face. Yamamoto had been the samurai guy… And he got to kill her onstage. And he tortured her onstage. In the original text, his character practically stripped the old woman of her clothing and human rights. That time, she got a 10/10 for her acting while Yamamoto got an 8.5, because he kept laughing and smiling while playing his part.

It was gruesome.

A bang on the restroom door sent her back to reality. "Get out, annoying woman!" Another demanding bang followed and Yuki rolled her eyes as she untied the ribbon and slipped it inside her school skirt pocket. She had tied her hair in a loose bun, some hair spiking out of control. "Coming, Ugly!" She opened the door and found herself staring at Gokudera, whose eyes widened when he saw her.

"Stop staring at me." She ran her fingers through her fringe. "Let's go back to the rooftop."

When they got there, the most horrible surprise had awaited her.

Yamamoto's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets when she practically rushed down to her seat.

"You look nice, Yuki-kun." His smile blinded her. She could read his appreciation in his eyes and with that a lot more. Of course, her best friend.

The way he admired her. That blinding smile he flashed at her. The warm aura practically radiating from him. It made her feel warm deep inside. Like butter, liquid and real and soaking, melting. Like he made her feel she was a human person.

She could like him. Oh, no, she was wrong. Her face dimpled. She still liked him.

And she smiled.

Later, After Baseball Practice

"That was cool," Yamamoto declared to a certain girl who walked beside him, strolling down the streets of Namimori. "Hn." She delivered a courteous nod. Earlier, she had been playing the batter and he was a pitcher. She'd scored a home run, not once, but thrice in a row and it took a lot of her energy to focus. She was getting a little annoyed, because her baseball stats were still being recorded and she herself knew the process included doing some Math, which she did not exactly appreciate. Behind them, the sun was setting down, its edges trimmed with a bright orange, vermillion, and a brilliant gold.

"You're such a great hitter, Yuki-kun." Another nod, to this cheerful baseball fan, but what surprised her was the speed in how he had changed his terms of calling to her. To be addressed so closely… like she meant something to him, like he was talking to Tsuna, someone he knew well and someone he wanted to protect so much. As a child, she knew well she had. A sister, a friend, a playmate. Yuki. "Hn." Yuki fished in her pocket for some bubblegum candy.

"You done with the Math assignment? Ugly-san saw me trying to solve it. I, um, well, I didn't finish it." A faint pink blush on her face.

"I forgot." Yamamoto laughed. "Ah, Gokudera's really good at Math."

"It doesn't look like it."

"People are full of surprises. One time, Tsuna and I had homework because we got low grades on a test, and we had to get it perfect, so we did it together at Tsuna's house." He laughed. "Gokudera went there, too. He managed to teach us. I understood the problem. The real problem was only one problem which we couldn't understand. We stayed up all night trying to answer it. It was fun."

No wonder he was staring at me. "So, you okay?" he added. "It's just that I heard about you running into Hibari-san and then, you got wet. I hope you'll join our game. We play Mafia!"

"Oh." He thinks it's all a game. The worry sank inside her. What if he hurts himself? Can I guarantee that? I'll join, then. It's best I keep him away from hurting himself in the fighting. I don't want him getting reckless and hurt. "I'll join your game." She found herself smiling, her heart beating fast. "Definitely, it looks fun. I'll do my best. Just like old times."

What caught her eye was the sky. It was slowly darkening and what was more, she didn't realize they were actually standing near her house.

Her house was a big one, with three storeys. The gate was painted a deep gray that looked almost black. Slowly, Yuki walked nearer to her house and rang on the door bell. "I'll see you tomorrow, then," she said, mustering the entire friendly aura in her that she usually tried to get rid of.

"Sure –"

The sounds of the gate opening interrupted them. "Is that your boyfriend, Yuki-kun?" Oh, jeez. He should have won the Oscars for the concern you could hear in his husky voice. Yuki craned her head. Her brother had opened the gate.

Kito Kanazawa stood at almost six feet, at the age of eighteen. He had messy and short red hair, with green eyes that lit up whenever he smiled (which he did rarely), and was thin and gangly. He wore a beige blazer, one sleeved rolled up, the blazer unbuttoned, showing his gray Paramore t-shirt and stonewashed black denim pants. In one hand, he held a plain hazel apron, for he had been cooking. The smell of newly cooked Japanese rice, ebi curry, and milk coffee invaded the street.

"Nii-san!" Yuki rolled her eyes. "Um, he's not my boyfriend." She turned her attention back to Yamamoto. He was smiling. "So, um see you –"

"You can eat dinner with us." Kito looked at Yuki, his special evil glare that said, "Please Explain, Yuki-chan." "We'd love to have you for dinner." Kito wrapped his arms around his sister protectively. "I'm also sure that you're hungry, are you not? The Kanazawa family is well known for their hospitality."

Yamamoto paused. "Sure! It looks fun!"

He joined them inside the house. Once the boy disappeared inside, Yuki turned her attention back to her older brother. "Nii-san, he's just… my friend. We're just friends." Kito rolled his eyes. "'Friends'?" he teased. Then his expression went serious. "Who knows, he might be something more? I'm wagering you two were a couple when I saw you two outside the house. So that must be that Yamamoto who you were close with as a child, huh?" Kito swung his apron around his shoulder and closed the gate. His fingers fiddled with the key and he locked the gate. "In the future, it's much more than that, Yuki." He smiled.

So he was hinting there was going to be much more than that. Yuki steeled herself. She popped the bubblegum in her mouth. "Now that I've made it clear that he is hell not my boyfriend, will you please bother yourself enough to tell me why is the Kanazawa working with the mafia, specifically the Vongola family?" Kito frowned at her, meeting her intens gaze. So his sister had finally know. It must be that Reborn, the Ninth's most trusted hitman. Kito had been getting letters from his parents about the Vongola, and that the one who would succeed Timoteo as Boss would be from Namimori. His mother had used to work under CEDEF, his father Varia. Kito's mother had met his father in a deserted bar in Italy; after that, Kito's mother had resigned from CEDEF to accept the offer of Varia. After a few years in the Varia and dating Kito's father, the two had retired briefly to watch their children's childhood and went back to action when Kito was in middle school and had made arrangements for Kito to be an emancipated minor.

Kito's aunt, Lily, had arrived to train Kito. She was a beautiful spinster with a mane of long red hair, green eyes, and known for her powerful brute strength and prowess with weapons, and she was from the Varia. Her Flame was Storm. Lily had trained Kito back then, pushing him to reciprocate her enormous muscle power, and in the end, she had molded the brainy nerd and aspiring musician Kito into a natural hitman who used weapons as part of his fighting style. His true weapon was his intelligence and tactics, using strategies.

Lily had tried training Yuki with weapons and she was a natural. Yuki had been too young but she did fine, although sometimes getting herself wounded in the process. The child had inherited some of her strength and Lily had decided that the child would be the one who would officially part of the Vongola Tenth's Family, one who would fight at the frontlines, not providing support. That time, Lily had declared Yuki too young; Kito's little sister was too enraptured in her baseball playing to even remember.

"Oh, that's a long story. The Kanazawa has been with the Vongola for nine generations. A member of the clan should join the Family and serve the Boss, alongside the Guardians. Ever since the first Vongola boss created the Family, a Kanazawa joined the Family. Two members, actually. Male and female. The male had a friendship with the Vongola so well and was so strong that he desired for his descendants to be friends and stand by and serve the Vongola proudly. Ever since, that tradition has been made."

"So, it means, I should fight." Yuki looked away. "I'm just a girl with a high intelligence, long hair that's hardly brushed, with no weapon, fighting at all. That's the truth. And now, a hitman wants me to join the Family. I did, because of Yamamoto. I just don't want him getting hurt is all."

"Chill, Yuki." He smiled. He took out a metal folding fan out of his pocket. "You have a weapon. A folding fan." In a puff, the fan grew bigger, to the height of Yamamoto. Kito opened the fan. There was a design of three circles in the fan, colored purple.

"A giant folding fan, my weapon?" Yuki took it from Kito, inspecting it. "Well, it has a name: Namikaze, the WindWave." A curt nod was given. "You know Temari's fan from Naruto?" Her teal eyes widened. "That's how it works. Don't ask me; Mother's been preparing for this for ten years. The fan wanted you, Yuki, trust me. It's the best weapon for someone like you: strong, smart. You can use it as a scythe, use it to blow away things. You train with Reborn; he'll help."

"Why not you?" Her pout was big. "I'm not as strong as you. I'm more of a strategist fighter. Besides, you'll be working in the Mafia soon, with the Tenth and His Guardians. Train with them."

"Yes."

"And by the way, most particularly, partnering with the Rain Guardian."

"Yuki-kun! The food's great!" called a voice from inside the house. Kito touched his glasses knowingly and entered inside. His little sister, little Yuki-kun. Always fancied herself a boy. Always scorned fussing with girly things. She would certainly be an interesting addition to the 10th's Family.

"Sure, Yamamoto!" she called back. Better put the fan in my bedroom before he notices.

Three Days Later, Baseball practice, Friday afternoon

"Still not done, Kanazawa?" called the captain. Yuki glanced up. Another typical Baseball Club practice: she usually sitting in the bleachers, with glasses on her nose, studying a book, or writing her Namimori Mail column, dressed in her baseball gear. She was a batter and a pitcher and quite a fast runner; to the team, it did not matter if she mostly spent her time doing her assignments or studying or answering her columns here – it was a matter of skill and pride and training. "Oh, just answering a question for my column," she called. Today, she had struggled with a bunch of English, Literature, History, and bloody Math homework, and her additional task: answer a question for her weekly column in the newspaper. The sound of pen clicking against paper resumed a few seconds after the girl's reply.

Dear Annie,

I really HATE this person. He's so annoying and clueless. He thinks he's so close with my other friend, just because he's so popular and athletic and sporty. Even I get higher grades than him in Math! Seriously, I want to get rid of him. But how can I do this without resorting to violent methods?

-SmokingBomb59

Yuki's face twitched. Bombs… Oh, right. She remembered Gokudera, trying to chase her with his bombs. And this person… Oh well, Yamamoto. Even if it had been a letter, she could not help feel a bit concerned about the two of them. The two were always clashing and she usually sided with Yamamoto. Did the two hate each other? As far as Yamamoto was showing, he was pretty warm on the whole. Oh, why did he even have to clash with Gokudera?

Dear SmokingBomb59,

One thing: ACCEPT this person the way he is. Getting rid of him will only make it worse. Open up, dude. This guy might be clueless and annoying and besides, if your friend accepts him, do the same. We live in a world called earth and all kinds of people make up a world: annoying, clueless, completely bossy, eccentric, but hey, that's the way it is. Don't blame him, but accept him. Be nice. And if you try getting rid of him, dude, it might hurt your friend. Do you want that to happen? Seriously, no one wants their friend to be unhappy.

Annie

Done. Yuki smiled to herself as she put the article inside her bag. "DONE!" She jumped and practically ran as soon as she put her bag on the bleachers. "DONE! DONE! I DID IT!" She could not bear it anymore.

"I'm DONE, Kaichou!" She practically yelled.

No answer. She looked around in her confusion.

"YUKI-KUN!" Yamamoto's voice. "What?" She bit her lip. "WATCH OUT!" She had wandered a bit too far. Past the baseball field. Her mind was in a muddle. Oh, no. She was going to get - Oh no. Oh no. Oh no. She tried to remember what had been happening. She had done her column and she had been enraptured by her own success that it suddenly occurred to her she had started prancing around happily across the baseball field. Away from the bleachers. Away from the team. Away from Yamamoto. And it had been him who was playing, when she had ran around the field. His powerful baseball prowess - Oh crap. She knew it. The baseball he had hit.

And something round hit her head hard. She fell into the darkness, enveloping her mind, her body, affecting her whole being. Trying was going to be pointless. Trying was going to be a challenge. Trying so hard... She struggled to keep herself awake. To be strong. No. No. No. Inwardly, she cursed herself for getting hit. She hated this. She didn't like people worrying so much about her. Worrying. She didn't want them to fuss with her. She hated to be protected. She wanted to be the one who was doing her job, worrying about others.

Her eyes closed.